11th Annual Women's Film Festival Runs Through March 1

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- "Crossings," the 11th annual International Women's Film Festival presented by the Institute for Research and Education on Woman and Gender, will begin be held on Thursdays beginning Jan. 25 and running through March 1 in the Market Arcade Film and Arts Center, 639 Main St.

All screenings will begin at 7 p.m.

This year's festival showcases features and documentaries from Bosnia to Buffalo that cross time, culture, memory and mortality to discover community and renewal, according to festival organizers. The festival opens on Jan. 25 with a screening of the 2002 Mexican film "The Faces of the Moon: Las Caras de la Luna," directed by Guita Schyfter. Schyfter will attend the screening to discuss the film and take questions from the audience.

The film tells the story of five women from divergent backgrounds who find themselves swapping views on feminism, politics and culture as they come together to review and rate entries in Mexico City's Latin American Women's Film Festival.

The remainder of the schedule:

• Feb. 1: "Grbavica: The Land of My Dreams," 2006, Bosnia-Herzegovina, directed by Jasmila Zbanic. A mother and daughter struggle with daily life in postwar Sarajevo as a terrible secret strains their relationship. Winner of the 2006 Berlin Film Festival Golden Bear Award for Best Film.

• Feb. 8: "My Cultural Divide," 2005, Canada/Bangladesh, directed by Faisal Lutchmedial. Lutchmedial is scheduled to attend the screening. While accompanying his ailing mother to Bangladesh, Lutchmedial makes his way into some of the worst factories in the country and talks frankly with the workers about their jobs and living conditions. This personal and hilarious journey bridges the gap between Lutchmedial's Bangladeshi heritage and his life in Canada.

• Feb. 15: "Festival," 2005, Scotland, directed by Buffalo native Annie Griffin. An ensemble comedy about backstage alliances and unexpected grace during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the world's first alternative theater festival.

• Feb. 22: "Compensation," 1999, U.S., directed by Zeinabu irene Davis. Inspired by a poem written by Paul Laurence Dunbar, this narrative presents two unique African-American love stories between a deaf woman and a hearing man.

• March 1: "A Night of Shorts." Western New York women filmmakers present original short films as the festival's finale. The directors have been invited to present and discuss their films.

Tickets to the festival's individual films are $8.50 for general admission, $6.50 for students and Hallwalls members, and $6 for seniors. Festival passes are available for $43 for general admission and $30 for students, Hallwalls members and seniors.

For more information, call the Gender Institute at 829-3451 or go to http://www.genderbuffalo.org/.